


When I'm Not There

by MiniNephthys



Category: Fate/stay night (Visual Novel)
Genre: Community: kink_bingo, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-07-17
Updated: 2011-07-17
Packaged: 2017-10-21 12:12:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/225040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiniNephthys/pseuds/MiniNephthys
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shirou gives Issei a parting gift.  Kink Bingo, for the square "writing on the body."  September 2010.</p>
            </blockquote>





	When I'm Not There

"You're really leaving for England, then?" Issei asked quietly.

They were sitting alone in Shirou's living room. Taiga was spending the evening with her grandfather, doing whatever it was that yakuza heads did in their spare time. She'd consented to allow Issei in the house with Shirou without her supervision. He was a good boy; she could trust him.

"Yeah, I am," Shirou answered. "I've got some more schooling I want to do outside of the country... Uh, there are really good schools for blacksmithing there, not so many here." It wasn't exactly a lie. He wanted to work on Projection magic more, and he could do that at Clock Tower.

Issei sighed. "I know I can't stop you, or I would. I don't want you to go."

"Issei..." Shirou began. "I know how you feel-"

"Do you really?" Issei asked, a note of hopelessness in his voice.

Shirou blinked. "Of course I do. We're best friends and you're going to miss me a lot these next few years. That's it, right?"

"...I suppose that adequately covers things." Issei slowly slid one of his hands over one of Shirou's. "But, Emiya. I don't know what to do next; I don't know how to spend our last precious days together. There are so many things I wanted to do and to say... I should have brought you a gift."

Shirou looked back up from where he had been staring at their hands. "A gift?"

"So that you don't simply forget about me when you travel to Britain." Issei paused, thoughtful. "I could have given you something from the garden, but flowers don't last very long, that sends the wrong message... Something I bought doesn't seem quite right even if I could afford anything you'd want."

Shirou thought for a second. "Well, I guess I could give you something too, since I won't see you for a while. Give me a sec." He stood and headed to the nearest cabinet. "Where do we keep - okay, here they are." He returned with an inkwell and a brush. "Take off your shirt."

Issei went bright red. "Wh-wh-what?! What are you asking me to do?"

Shirou rolled his eyes. "Just do it, Issei."

"If... if you insist." Still blushing, Issei pulled off his jacket and shirt. "Now what?"

"Lie down on your stomach." After Issei did so, Shirou scooted closer. He paused for a moment to concentrate, then began.

Rune magic was not his area of expertise. In fact, he had never tried it before this year, where he'd been idly reading one of Rin's books about the subject. But it seemed simple enough if you could get the symbols right, and this was a harmless way to test it.

Besides that, he was worried. Fuyuki City wasn't completely safe. Nowhere was, but there'd been enough magus activity in Fuyuki that he had good reason to be concerned. If someone was there who decided to suck power from the town, Shirou wouldn't be there to stop them.

And he wanted Issei to stay safe. He deserved to. Issei, for all his faults, was a genuinely kind-hearted person who wanted the best for the people around him.

Wynn came first, for joy and bliss. He stroked one long line straight up, then the two slanted lines that made it look like a more angular p. Then fehu, for wealth, money, and cattle. Issei shivered under the three strokes, causing them to come out a little smudged. Then an x - gyfu, gift or generosity. All the runes that one could use to wish someone well, he wrote on Issei's back in an attempt to make his future years happy ones.

"Wh...what exactly are you doing?" Issei asked, trying not to move.

"Just trying to help," Shirou answered vaguely.

"Why won't you be any more specific?" Issei wondered allowed.

"You'd make fun of me for believing it would actually work."

"You... realize that writing on me is an immense turn on?"

Shirou's brush stopped mid-stroke. "...Eh?"


End file.
